Two-piece vehicle floor cover retention device

ABSTRACT

In a grommet for a vehicle floor cover, receptacles formed in a generally cylindrical inner surface of a female tubular body making up part of one grommet portion receive protrusions formed on a generally cylindrical outer surface of a male tubular body making up part of a second grommet portion.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a division of copending U.S. patent application Ser.No. 13/457,625 owned by the common assignee hereof The specification anddrawings of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/457,625 are fullyincorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Vehicle floor covers, such as floor mats or floor trays, are commonlyavailable to protect the underlying vehicle carpeting and to facilitateremoval of dirt or debris from the foot wells of the vehicle. Due to thedanger of interference with the gas and brake pedals, at least thatfloor cover provided for the driver's side must be secured in placewithin the driver's side foot well. Many vehicle manufacturers securetheir floor covers by employing vertical studs, which are affixed to thefoot well, in combination with holes or grommets in the floor covers.Some of these studs have an oblong rotatable locking member which isaffixed to an upstanding post. Once the hole or grommet of the floorcover is placed over the vertical stud, the oblong rotatable member isturned to prevent the stud from being removed from the hole or grommet.It is important to correctly orient the stud-receiving orifice in anyhole-cladding grommet with the position that the rotatable member takesprior to turning it to secure the floor cover to the foot well floor.Many grommets have two pieces and are assembled to the floor cover holewith the floor cover sandwiched between them. Time-wasting errors can becommitted in attempting to assemble the top grommet portion to thebottom grommet portion the wrong way.

By their nature, vehicle floor mats and trays are meant to be installedand removed, often by a consumer. Sometimes a consumer will incorrectlyinstall a mat or tray, sometimes upside down.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one embodiment, a vehicle floor cover (such as a vehicle floor mat ortray) has an upper surface, a lower surface, and a hole formed from thelower surface to the upper surface around the axis. A grommet, which maybe provided separately, is provided to clad this hole and has bottom andtop grommet portions. The bottom grommet portion has a bottom tubularbody formed around an axis. The bottom tubular body has a bottom floorcover retention flange extending radially outwardly from its outersurface. At least a portion of the bottom tubular body upwardly extendsfrom the bottom floor cover retention flange.

A top grommet portion has a top tubular body formed around the axis. Thetop tubular body has a top floor cover retention flange which extendsradially outwardly from its outer surface. At least a portion of the toptubular body downwardly extends from the top floor cover retentionflange.

One of the top and bottom tubular bodies is female and the other of thetop and bottom tubular bodies is male, such that the male tubular bodyfits inside of the female tubular body. At least one receptacle isformed in the generally circularly cylindrical inner surface of thefemale tubular body to extend radially outwardly therefrom. Thisreceptacle is disposed adjacent to an upper axial end of the femaletubular body and axially extends therefrom by a depth which is less thanthe length of the inner surface of the female tubular body.

A generally cylindrical outer surface of the male tubular body has atleast one protrusion which radially outwardly extends therefrom, and isadapted to be received in the receptacle formed in the female tubularbody. This prevents rotation of the male tubular body relative to thefemale tubular body around the axis. The limited depth of the receptacleprevents the assembly of the male tubular body to the female tubularbody in an upside down condition, such as top-to-top orbottom-to-bottom; it will only allow bottom-to-top assembly.

In one embodiment fasteners, such as latches, are formed on the top andbottom grommet portions respectively to fasten to each other, such as bya snap fit, once the male tubular body is received by the female tubularbody.

In one embodiment the vehicle floor cover hole is noncircular in that ithas a plurality of grooves radially outwardly extending from a generallycircularly cylindrical sidewall of the hole. The outer surface of thefemale tubular body includes radially outwardly extending protrusionswhich are each adapted to be received in respective ones of the grooves.The interacting noncircular orienting grooves, protrusions andreceptacles insure that the grommet as installed will have the correctangular disposition relative to axis of the retention stud that thegrommeted hole is adapted to receive. The floor cover then will befastened in place in the vehicle foot well in the correct location anddisposition.

In another aspect, a grommet for use in cladding one of a plurality ofstud retention holes made in respective vehicle foot well covers havingdifferent thicknesses comprises a top grommet portion and a bottomgrommet portion. The top grommet portion has a top tubular body that isformed around an axis and has an outer surface. A top floor coverretention flange extends radially outwardly from the outer surface ofthe top tubular body. The bottom grommet portion has a bottom tubularbody that is formed around the axis and has an outer surface and abottom floor cover retention flange that extends radially outwardly fromthe outer surface of the bottom tubular body.

A preselected one of the top and bottom tubular bodies is a femaletubular body and the other of the top and bottom tubular bodies is amale tubular body adapted to be received inside of the female tubularbody. A plurality of angularly spaced-apart chamfered gussets are eachformed to join the outer surface of the female tubular body to the floorcover retention flange associated with that tubular body. A right crosssectional area of each gusset increases as a function of its axialproximity to the floor cover retention flange. In one embodiment thefloor cover retention flange to which the gussets are joined is thebottom floor cover retention flange. When the grommet is used to clad orjacket a hole made in a relatively thick floor cover, the gussets willbite into the floor cover. When the grommet is used instead to clad orjacket a hole in a relatively thin floor cover, the gussets will act toprop the thickness of the floor cover against the top floor coverretention flange, so that there will be no gap between the upper surfaceof the floor cover and the lower surface of the top floor coverretention flange.

In another aspect, a floor cover retention system includes a pluralityof studs formed to stand up from the vehicle foot well floor, and amatching plurality of grommet-clad holes in a mat or tray for receivingrespective ones of the studs. Among these studs are a first stud, whichcan be near an aft and outboard corner of the floor cover, and a secondstud, which can be near an aft and inboard corner of the floor cover.The first stud, a first floor cover hole and a first grommet are alldisposed on a first axis. The second stud, a second floor cover hole anda second grommet are all disposed on a second axis. The first grommetdefines a first stud hole for receiving the first stud, while the secondgrommet defines a second stud hole for receiving the second stud. Thefirst stud is noncircular in right cross section and the first stud holeis likewise. The second stud is noncircular in right cross section andthe second stud hole is likewise. The first and second studs, and thefirst and second stud holes, are intentionally oriented differently fromeach other, such that the first stud is not a mirror image of the secondabout an imaginary longitudinal center line drawn between the studs. Thestud holes and studs are so selected that in the case of at least one ofthe studs, the stud can be received in one of the stud holes but not theother. This militates against a consumer attempting to install a mat ortray upside down. Preferably both stud holes are mutually exclusive: itwill accept the stud for which it was intended, but not the other one.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further aspects of the invention and their advantages can be discernedin the following detailed description, in which like characters denotelike parts and in which:

FIG. 1 is an isometric exploded view showing a portion of a vehiclefloor cover, a top grommet portion, and a bottom grommet portion;

FIG. 2 is an exploded and detailed top isometric view showing a portionof a vehicle floor cover, a top grommet portion, a bottom grommetportion and a vehicle foot well retention stud receivable into thegrommet;

FIG. 3 is an exploded bottom isometric view showing the floor cover andthe grommet portions of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a side sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, shownin an assembled condition;

FIG. 5 is an exploded top isometric view of a grommet having a pluralityof gussets;

FIG. 6 is a magnified side sectional view showing the grommet of FIG. 5in an assembled condition, and as cladding floor covers of differentthicknesses;

FIG. 7A is an exploded top isometric view showing a floor cover, a topgrommet portion, and a bottom grommet portion according to a thirdembodiment;

FIG. 7B is an exploded bottom isometric view of the top and bottomgrommet portions and the floor cover shown in FIG. 7A;

FIG. 8A is a side sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 7A and7B, normal to the receptacles and protrusions appearing therein, andshown in an assembled condition;

FIG. 8B is a side sectional view taken substantially along line 8B-8B ofFIG. 7A; and

FIG. 9 is an exploded isometric view of a vehicle floor cover affixationsystem in which the studs and grommet stud holes have intentionallydifferent spatial orientations.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As described briefly above, aspects of the present invention includegrommets for cladding stud retention holes formed in vehicle floorcovers, floor covers with these grommets installed, and systemsincluding such vehicle floor covers and vehicle foot wells provided withretention studs to fasten them in place. FIG. 1 shows a floor coverretention system, indicated generally at 100, having a vehicle floorcover 102 (such as a mat or tray) with an upper surface 104, a lowersurface 300 (see FIG. 3), and at least one floor cover stud retentionhole 106 formed in the floor cover 102 between the upper and lowersurfaces 104, 300. The floor cover stud retention hole 106 is formedaround a vertical axis 108. Often there are two laterally spaced-apartstuds and floor cover retention holes, typically located near the aftoutboard and aft inboard corners of the foot well and floor cover, butonly a representative one of them is shown in FIGS. 1-8B. Two such studsand holes can be seen in FIG. 9.

The floor cover retention hole 106 is clad with a grommet 110 whichincludes an upper grommet portion 112 and a lower grommet portion 114.The upper grommet portion 112 and lower grommet portion 114 areassembled to sandwich the vehicle floor cover 102 between them. The studretention hole 106 can be generally circularly cylindrical, as shown,and preferably is provided with one or more outwardly laterally radiallyextending grooves 116 which can be used to angularly orient the grommet110 to the floor cover. In the illustrated embodiment there are two suchgrooves 116, angularly spaced apart from each other by 180 degrees.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the floor cover stud retention hole 106 has agenerally circularly cylindrical sidewall 200 in which the noncircularorienting shapes or grooves 116 are formed. As will become apparentbelow, the grooves 116 combine with top and bottom grommet portions 112,114 to ensure that one or more of the top and lower grommet portions112, 114 are properly oriented within the floor cover stud retentionhole 106.

The noncircular orienting shape or shapes 116 may take a variety offorms. Instead of radially outwardly projecting grooves as shown, theshape or shapes can comprise a hole margin which is more generallynoncircular, e.g. an ellipse, it can have one or more protrusions, e.g.a star, or it can have one or more indentations around the perimeter ofthe hole 106. Alternatively stated, the noncircular orienting shape(s)116 of the hole 106 can take any shape other than a circle centered onaxis 108.

The top and bottom grommet portions 112, 114 cooperate with a vehiclefoot well retaining stud 202 (see FIGS. 2 and 4) to secure the floorcover 102 in a fixed position (to the foot well, not shown) and toprevent its movement. The retaining stud 202 is typically integratedinto the foot well (not shown) by the vehicle manufacturer, but this isnot necessarily so.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 4 and in one embodiment, the retaining stud 202has an upstanding post 204 and a locking member 206 that is rotatablyaffixed to the top of the upstanding post 204. The stud 202 is formedaround the axis 108, and the rotatable member 206 can be rotated by theuser around the axis 108 between a first, unlocked position and asecond, locked position. Typically, the rotatable member 206 is affixedto an upper end 400 of the stud 202 and turns between a first positionand a second position (which is typically offset from the first positionby) 90° on the upstanding post 204. A cross section of a verticalsidewall surface 212 of the rotating member 206 preferably does notconform to a circle centered on the axis 108, such that when therotating member 206 cooperates with the top or bottom grommet portions112, 114 of the grommet 110, an inner surface 208 of the lower grommetportion 114 allows the insertion of the stud 202 through the top andbottom grommet portions 112, 114 when the rotating member 206 is in thefirst position, and prevents removal when in the second position.

In this embodiment, a vertical stud surface 210 is mathematicallycylindrical or prismatic in that its cross section does not vary alongthe axis 108. At its junction with the vertical stud surface 210, thevertical side wall 212 of the rotating member 206 conforms to, andpreferably is continuous with, the cylinder of the vertical stud surface210 when in the first position and doesn't conform to this cylinder whenmember 206 has been rotated to the second position. The retaining stud202 may have a shape that is radially asymmetrical, such as a rectangleor an oval, and preferably includes the rotatable member 206 describedabove, but the stud 202 may also take other forms that do not haverotating fasteners, e.g. hooks. The rotating member 206 may have anupper portion 214 that has been scalloped for better manipulation byfingers.

The bottom grommet portion 114 has a bottom tubular body 216 formedaround the axis 108. In the illustrated embodiment the bottom tubularbody 216 has a generally circularly cylindrical inner surface 208 and agenerally circularly cylindrical outer surface 218. A bottom floor coverretention flange 222 extends radially outwardly from the outer surface218 of the bottom tubular body 216 so that the bottom floor coverretention flange 222 is at an angle (such as a right angle) to the axis108. In the illustrated embodiment at least a portion of the bottomtubular body 216 extends upwardly from the bottom floor cover retentionflange 222.

The top grommet portion 112 has a top tubular body 230 formed around theaxis 108. The top tubular body 230 has a generally circularlycylindrical inner surface 232 and a generally circularly cylindricalouter surface 234. A top floor cover retention flange 240 extendsradially outwardly from the outer surface 234 of the top tubular body230 such that it is at an angle to the axis 108. At least a portion ofthe top tubular body 230 extends downwardly from the top floor coverretention flange 240. Preferably, the top floor cover retention flange240 is perpendicular to the axis 108 and outer surface 234, and theflanges 222, 240 may extend entirely or partially around thecircumference of the respective tubular bodies 216, 230.

A preselected one of the bottom and top tubular bodies 216, 230 isfemale and the other is male. At least one, and in this embodiment two,outer noncircular orienting features 310 are formed on the outer surface218 of the female tubular body to be angularly spaced apart from eachother and to register with the corresponding noncircular orientingshape(s) or groove(s) 116 of the hole 106 so as to prevent rotation ofthe female tubular body relative to the floor cover 102 around the axis108. The generally circularly cylindrical inner surface 208 of thefemale tubular body has at least one, and in this embodiment two,angularly spaced-apart inner noncircular orienting features 312. Innerorienting features 312 conveniently may be formed at the same angularplace as, or in angular alignment with, outer orienting features 310,and as inverses of the outer features or protrusions 310, and with asubstantially uniform thickness between them, but alternatively theinner features 312 may be angularly displaced from the outer features310 and may take an entirely different shape.

In the illustrated embodiment each orienting feature 312 is a radiallyoutwardly extending receptacle having a floor 314; it is “blind” in thatthe receptacle 312 intentionally does not extend through the entiredepth of the female tubular body. Each receptacle 312 is adjacent to anupper axial end or margin 313 of the female tubular body. If more thanone receptacle 312 is provided, they should be angularly spaced apartfrom each other. The receptacle floors 314 limit the travel of the uppergrommet portion relative to the lower one such that the plastic orrubber vehicle floor mat or tray 102 is not overcompressed. The floors314 will permit a small amount of overdrive of one fastening wedge 320past the other fastening wedge 322 (see FIG. 6), so as to permit thefemale and male tubular bodies to snap together. The limited depth ofthe receptacles 312 makes it impossible for top portion 112 to beassembled to bottom portion 114 in any but a bottom-to-top orientation;an assembler will not succeed in joining the grommet halves upside down.

An inner surface 316 of the male tubular body is sized to receive therotatable member 206 and the post 204, and a generally circularlycylindrical outer surface 234 of the male tubular body has at least one,and in this embodiment two, noncircular orienting elements orprotrusions 318 for registration with the inner noncircular orientingfeature(s) or receptacles 312 of the female tubular body, so as toprevent rotation of the male tubular body 230 relative to the femaletubular body 216 around the axis 108. Elements or protrusions 318 extendradially outwardly from the generally circularly cylindrical outersurface 234 and in this embodiment adjacent to a lower surface of theretention flange 240. The protrusions 318 do not extend for the lengthof the tubular body 216.

One or more fasteners or latches 320, 322 are formed on the top andbottom grommet portions 112, 114 to fasten the portions 112, 114 to eachother once the male tubular body is received into the female tubularbody, forming a snap or interference fit. In this embodiment, fastenersor latches 320, 322 are in the form of opposed wedges (because they arecurved around axis 108, they are really frustoconical sections) and willsnap past each other when the grommet halves are installed to clad afloor cover hole. Wedge 320 has a thickness which decreases as afunction of axial depth (down in FIGS. 2 and 3). Wedge 322 has athickness which increases as a function of axial depth.

FIGS. 1-6 show the bottom tubular body 216 as being female, but thereverse configuration can also be used with slight modifications to thestructure of the top grommet portion 112 and bottom grommet portion 114.See FIGS. 7A-B and 8A-B, discussed below.

The inner surface 316 of the male tubular body preferably has a lowerportion 324, an upper portion 326, and at least one land 328 between thelower and upper portions 324, 326. The land 328 extends radiallyinwardly from the inner surface 232. The lower portion 326 of the maletubular body and the land 328 permit the insertion therethrough of thestud 202 when the rotating member 206 is in the first position, and theland 328 prevents the withdrawal of the stud 202 once the rotatingmember 206 is rotated to the second position.

As described previously and as shown in FIG. 2, a vertical surface 210of the post 204 is formed to be mathematically cylindrical relative tothe axis 108 but with a noncircular cross section relative to the axis108. The vertical side wall 212 of the rotating member 206 may be formedto be cylindrical relative to the axis 108 but also have a noncircularcross section relative to the axis 108. The rotating member 206 can bein cylindrical alignment with the vertical surface 210 of the post 204when in the first position. The rotating member 206 is not incylindrical alignment with the vertical surface 210 of the post 204 whenin the second position.

FIGS. 1-3 also show that the sidewall 200 of the hole of the floor cover102 is generally circularly cylindrical. The one or more noncylindricalorienting shapes 116 of the cover hole 106 may be one of a plurality ofgrooves, or shaped cut-outs 116, such as triangles, semicircles,triangles, etc., that extend radially outwardly from the rest of thesidewall 200 of the hole 106. The outer noncircular orienting feature(s)310 each may be one of a plurality of radially outwardly extendingprotrusions that register with the grooves or cut-outs. The noncircularorienting element(s) 318 of the top grommet portion 112 may be avertical fin, or “ear,” or a bump, which extends radially outwardly fromthe otherwise circularly cylindrical outside surface 234 of the maletubular body and engages with the noncircular orienting shape of feature312.

As discussed briefly above, the orienting shape(s) 116 may be formedinto the entire floor cover hole 106, so that the floor cover hole 106permits assembly with the top and/or bottom grommet portions 112, 114only when the grommet portions 112, 114 are oriented in a specificdirection in relation to the floor cover 102. For example, the floorcover hole 106 may be an oval, triangle, rectangle, or other shape thatdoes not permit rotation of the grommet relative to it around the axis108.

As shown in FIG. 2, the noncircular orienting shape(s) 116 of the floorcover 102, each of the inner noncircular orienting feature(s) 220, theouter noncircular orienting feature(s) 310, and the noncircularorienting element(s) 318 compliments its mating orienting structure.When assembled, these orienting structures combine to orient the top andthe bottom grommet portions 112, 114 within the floor cover hole 106 ina predetermined direction and to prevent rotation of the grommet 110relative to the floor cover 102 about the axis 108.

FIGS. 7A-B and 8A-B show that the top grommet portion 702 may be female,the bottom grommet portion 704 may be male, and the stud-retaining land328 may be formed into the bottom grommet portion 704. At least one (andin the illustrated embodiment, two) noncircular orienting features 706are formed on a generally circularly cylindrical outer surface 708 ofthe female tubular body 710 (here shown to be the top grommet portion702) to register with the corresponding noncircular orienting shape(s)116 of the hole 106. As above, the combination of the orientingfeature(s) 706 and the orienting shape(s) 116 prevents rotation of thefemale tubular body relative to the floor cover 102 around the axis 108.A top floor cover retention flange 240 extends radially outwardly fromthe outer surface 708 of the top tubular body 710.

The bottom grommet portion 704 has a bottom tubular body 712, and agenerally circularly cylindrical outer surface 714 thereof has at leastone, and in the illustrated embodiment two, noncircular orientingelements or protrusions 716, which register with respective innernoncircular orienting features or receptacles 718 of the female tubularbody.

As shown in FIG. 6, the floor cover 102 can be either a floor tray 602,which conforms to the shape of the vehicle foot well (not shown), or afloor mat 604, which generally conforms to and is coextensive with thefloor and firewall of the foot well (also not shown). In the illustratedembodiment, the tray 602 is relatively thin and rigid, while the mat 604is thicker and more yieldable, but the reverse could be true.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the bottom grommet portion 114 may also haveone or more angularly spaced-apart (if two or more) chamfered gussets502 that are formed to join the outer surface 218 of the female tubularbody 216 to the bottom floor cover retention flange 222. Each gusset 502has an outwardly and downwardly sloping edge or stop surface 506. Thehorizontal distance 607 of the stop surface 506 from the outer surface218 of the female tubular body increases as a function of depth and thesurface's proximity to bottom retention flange 222. A right crosssectional area (normal to axis 108) of the gusset 502 increases as afunction of its axial proximity to flange 222.

In this embodiment, when the top grommet portion 112 is mated with thebottom grommet portion 114 (see FIG. 6), the gussets 502 create a region606 of variable compression that is capable of affixing the top andbottom grommet portions 112, 114 in order to tightly clad floor coversof different thicknesses. For example, FIG. 6 shows that the top andbottom grommet portions 112, 114 are capable of accommodating, clampingor affixing the grommet 101 to either a floor cover 602 with a thicknessT1 or a floor cover 604 with a greater thickness T2 within the region ofvariable compression 606. More of gusset 502 is used to compress thethicker floor cover 604, and less of it will compress thinner floorcover 602. Gusset 502 will tend to prop thinner floor cover 602 againstthe lower surface of upper retention flange 240, removing anyperceptible axial gap between that surface and the lower surface 300 ofthe floor cover 602.

The gussets 502 each have a peak 608, a bottom end 610, and a stopsurface 506 that supports and as necessary props up the floor cover 602,604. The stop surface 506 preferably bites into the floor cover 602,604, providing compression between the gusset 502 and the top floorcover retention flange 240. The stop surface 506 is shown to be linearin FIGS. 4 and 6, but it may take a variety of configurations, such as acurved surface or even a series of stepped ledges. During grommetassembly, the stop surfaces 506 help center the floor cover 102 alongthe axis 108 and the peak 608 of the stop surface can be spaced from thetop end 313 of the female tubular body 216 as shown in FIG. 6. Thedisplacement of peak 608 from the top end 313 (or, alternatively, fromthe lower surface of the retention flange 240) can be selected toaccommodate the thinnest floor cover 602 for which the grommet 101 willbe provided.

In one embodiment and as illustrated in FIG. 9, a floor cover retentionsystem employs at least two studs 202, 902 which can be permanentlyaffixed to a floor of a vehicle foot well indicated generally at 904.Upstanding stud 202 is disposed on an axis 108 which is laterally spacedapart (preferably in a transverse direction) from an axis 906 on whichis disposed the stud 902. A floor cover 908, which may be a mat or atray, has first and second stud holes 106, 910 and respective first andsecond grommets 110, 912, which conveniently can be of the two-piecetype, representative examples of which are described above. As installedin the vehicle, the first grommet 110, first floor cover hole 106 andfirst stud 202 all are disposed on a first, outboard axis 108. Thesecond grommet 912, the second floor cover hole 910 and the second stud902 are all disposed on a second, inboard axis 906. The axes 108, 906are substantially equidistant from a floor cover center line 914, whichmay not define the center of the floor cover 908, but whichsubstantially bisects the distance between axes 108 and 906. A fore andaft foot well center line 915 bisects the transverse distance betweenstud 202 and stud 902. When the floor cover is installed in the vehicle,center line 915 will be substantially congruent with center line 914.Axis 108 may be near an aft and outboard corner 916 of the floor cover908; axis 906 may be near an aft and inboard corner 918 of the floorcover 908. Because the foot wells of conventional vehicles are often notbilaterally symmetrical around their fore and aft center lines, the matsand trays designed to fit into them will often not be, either, andtherefore the positioning of the studs 202, 902 and the grommets 110,912 may have considerable deviation away from bilateral symmetry; onestud may be more forward, or farther away from, the margin of mat/tray908, than the other.

Studs 202 and 902 have respective vertical sidewalls 210, 919 which arenon-circular in right cross-section. As shown, the studs 202, 902 may bemathematically cylindrical or prismatic, although alternatively theirlateral thickness could vary as a function of height along the axis,such that they would “snap” past any receiving grommet stud hole(described below) rather than be simply slidably received into it. Inthe illustrated embodiment, first stud 202 comprises a post 204 which ispermanently affixed to the vehicle foot well floor or carpet 904, and alocking and rotating member 206 which is pivotally attached to a top end400 of the post 204. The locking and rotating member 206 may be rotatedbetween a first position in which a sidewall 212 thereof is in alignmentwith a sidewall 210 of the post 204, and a second position (not shown;see FIG. 4) in which sidewall 212 is intentionally out of alignment withthe sidewall 210 of the post 204. Stud 902 can have a similarconstruction. Alternatively the studs 202. 902 may have no such rotatingor locking members and may simply be solid pieces.

Grommet 110 has a stud hole 920 into which stud 202 may be slidablyreceived. The floor cover hole 106 formed in floor cover 908 has atleast one (in the illustrated embodiment, two) orienting shapes 116which cooperate with orienting features on grommet 110 (as examples, seefeatures 310 (FIG. 2), 706 (FIG. 7B)) to prevent rotation of the grommet110 with respect to the floor cover 908. In this way, the stud hole 106will have a predetermined orientation with respect to the floor cover908 and the stud 202. Grommet 912 has a stud hole 922 into which stud902 may be slidably received. The inboard floor cover hole 910 has atleast one (in the illustrated embodiment, two) orienting shapes 924which cooperate with orienting features on grommet 912 (see exampleslisted above) to prevent rotation of the grommet 912 with respect to thefloor cover 908. Stud hole 922, which is also noncircular, willtherefore have a predetermined orientation with respect to the floorcover 908 and the stud 902.

In this embodiment, studs 202 and 902 are not mirror images of eachother around the center line 915. In like manner, stud holes 920 and 922are not mirror images of each other around the center line 914. In theillustrated embodiment, the studs 202 and 902, and the grommets 110, 912into which they fit, are respectively identical in shape, but theirorientation is intentionally different. For example, the stud 202, whichcan be oblong as shown, has a greater lateral dimension in thetransverse or side-to-side direction, while stud 902 has its greaterlateral dimension in the longitudinal or fore-and-aft direction. Thiscauses the grommet 110 to successfully receive only stud 202, whilegrommet 912 can receive only stud 902. The studs 202, 902 should be sosized and shaped that neither of them will fit into both grommets 110,912 but only into one of them.

Suppose that a consumer attempts to install mat or tray 908 upside down,such that the position of grommets 110, 912 is reversed. The consumerwill quickly discover that grommet 912 does not admit the stud 202, andthat grommet 110 does not admit the stud 902. The consumer is thusforced to flip over the floor cover 908 such that it is right-side up,and then will find that the floor cover grommets 110, 912 fit onto thestuds 202, 902 in the way the manufacturer intended.

While studs 202 and 902, and grommets 110 and 912, conveniently can beidentical to each other in structure, thereby minimizing manufacturingcosts, it is also possible to provide a stud 202 whose right crosssection is very different from the right cross section of stud 902. Forexample, stud 202 can be triangular in cross section, while stud 902 canbe star-shaped, and their respective stud holes 920, 922 cancorrespondingly conform. Any noncircular shapes can be used, with thefollowing limitations: (a) the shapes cannot be mirror images of eachother around the center lines 914, 915, and (b) at least one of thestuds 202, 902 will be able to be received into only one of the grommets110, 912 rather than both of them. Preferably the studs and grommets202, 902; 110, 912 are mutually exclusive: grommet 110 will only receivestud 202, and grommet 912 will only receive stud 902.

In summary, a vehicle floor cover/grommet orientation system has beenillustrated and described, whereby two-piece grommets may be assembledto floor cover grommet holes in only a specific orientation. Thisassures that as assembled, a noncircular stud hole of the grommet willcorrectly receive the vehicle floor cover stud that it was intended tofit over. The noncircular cross sections of the studs and stud holes arealso used to provide a vehicle floor cover in which a first stud hole isdifferent from and not a mirror image of a second stud hole, mitigatingthe chance that the user will incorrectly install the floor cover in thevehicle foot well. While embodiments of the present invention have beendescribed and illustrated in the appended drawings, the presentinvention is not limited thereto but only by the scope and spirit of theappended claims.

We claim:
 1. A vehicle floor cover comprising: A floor cover body having an upper surface, a lower surface, and a hole formed from the lower surface to the upper surface around an axis; a bottom grommet portion having a bottom tubular body formed around the axis, the bottom tubular body having an inner surface and an outer surface, a bottom floor cover retention flange extending radially outwardly from the outer surface of the bottom tubular body, at least a portion of the bottom tubular body upwardly extending from the bottom floor cover retention flange; a top grommet portion having a top tubular body formed around the axis, the top tubular body having an inner surface and an outer surface, a top floor cover retention flange extending radially outwardly from the outer surface of the top tubular body, at least a portion of the top tubular body downwardly extending from the top floor cover retention flange; a preselected one of the top and bottom tubular bodies being female and the other of the top and bottom tubular bodies being male, such that the male tubular body fits inside of the female tubular body, an inner surface of the female tubular body being generally cylindrical and having a length, at least one receptacle formed in the inner surface of the female tubular body to extend radially outwardly therefrom, the receptacle disposed adjacent to an upper axial end of the female tubular body, the receptacle having an axial depth as measured from the free end which is less than the length of the inner surface of the female tubular body; an outer surface of the male tubular body being generally cylindrical, at least one protrusion radially outwardly extending from the outer surface of the male tubular body and adapted to be received in said receptacle of the female tubular body, the protrusion of the male tubular body cooperating with the receptacle of the female tubular body to prevent rotation of the male tubular body relative to the female tubular body around the axis, the axial depth of the receptacle being less than the length of the inner surface of the female tubular body, thereby preventing the assembly of the female tubular body in an upside down condition to the male tubular body.
 2. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the bottom tubular body is female.
 3. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the vehicle floor cover is selected from the group consisting of floor mats and floor trays.
 4. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the sidewall of the hole of the floor cover is generally circularly cylindrical, a plurality of angularly spaced apart grooves extending radially outwardly from the sidewall of the hole of the floor cover, an outer surface of the female tubular body including a plurality of radially outwardly extending protrusions each adapted to be received in a respective one of the grooves.
 5. The vehicle floor cover of claim 4, wherein the receptacle formed in the inner surface of the female tubular body is one of a plurality of receptacles angularly spaced from each other, the protrusions radially outwardly extending from the outer surface of the female tubular body being in angular alignment with the receptacles formed into the inner surface of the female tubular body.
 6. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the top floor cover retention flange extends around the entire circumference of the top tubular body and the bottom floor cover retention flange extends around the entire circumference of the bottom tubular body.
 7. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the female tubular body further comprises a plurality of angularly spaced-apart chamfered gussets, each gusset formed to join the outer surface of the female tubular body to the bottom floor cover retention flange, a right cross sectional area of each gusset increasing as a function of its axial proximity to the bottom floor cover retention flange.
 8. The vehicle floor cover of claim 7, wherein each gusset includes a peak adjoining the outer surface of the female tubular body, a bottom end adjoining the bottom floor cover retention flange, and a linear stop surface extending between the peak and the last said bottom end.
 9. The vehicle floor cover of claim 7, wherein each gusset includes a peak adjoining the outer surface of the female tubular body, the peak being spaced from a top end of the female tubular body.
 10. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the female tubular body includes a plurality of angularly spaced-apart receptacles each extending radially outwardly from the generally cylindrical inner surface of the female tubular body, the male tubular body having a plurality of angularly spaced-apart protrusions each adapted to be received in a respective one of the receptacles.
 11. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, and further comprising a first latch formed into the inner surface of the female tubular body and a second latch formed into the outer surface of the male tubular body, the first and second latches coacting to produce a snap fit when the male tubular body is pressed into the female tubular body.
 12. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the inner surface of the male tubular body has a lower portion, an upper portion, and at least one land between the upper and lower portions and extending radially inwardly from the inner surface of the male tubular body.
 13. The vehicle floor cover of claim 1, wherein the male tubular body is the top grommet portion.
 14. A grommet comprising: a bottom grommet portion having a bottom tubular body formed around an axis, the bottom tubular body having an inner surface and an outer surface, a bottom floor cover retention flange extending radially outwardly from the outer surface of the bottom tubular body, at least a portion of the bottom tubular body upwardly extending from the bottom floor cover retention flange; a top grommet portion having a top tubular body formed around the axis, the top tubular body having an inner surface and an outer surface, a top floor cover retention flange extending radially outwardly from the outer surface of the top tubular body, at least a portion of the top tubular body downwardly extending from the top floor cover retention flange; a preselected one of the top and bottom tubular bodies being female and the other of the top and bottom tubular bodies being male, such that the male tubular body fits inside of the female tubular body, an inner surface of the female tubular body being generally cylindrical and having a length, at least one receptacle formed in the inner surface of the female tubular body to extend radially outwardly therefrom, the receptacle disposed adjacent to an upper axial end of the female tubular body, the receptacle having an axial depth as measured from the free end which is less than the length of the inner surface of the female tubular body; an outer surface of the male tubular body being generally cylindrical, at least one protrusion radially outwardly extending from the outer surface of the male tubular body and adapted to be received in said receptacle of the female tubular body, the protrusion of the male tubular body cooperating with the receptacle of the female tubular body to prevent rotation of the male tubular body relative to the female tubular body around the axis, the axial depth of the receptacle being less than the length of the inner surface of the female tubular body, thereby preventing the assembly of the female tubular body in an upside down condition to the male tubular body.
 15. The grommet of claim 14, wherein the bottom tubular body is female.
 16. The grommet of claim 14, and further comprising a first latch formed into the inner surface of the female tubular body and a second latch formed into the outer surface of the male tubular body, the first and second latches coacting to produce a snap fit when the male tubular body is pressed into the female tubular body.
 17. The grommet of claim 14, wherein the inner surface of the male tubular body has a lower portion, an upper portion, and at least one land between the upper and lower portions and extending radially inwardly from the inner surface.
 18. The grommet of claim 14, wherein the male tubular body has a length, a depth of the protrusion in the axial direction being less than the last said length, the protrusion formed to adjoin the retention flange associated with the male tubular body. 